Hurrah! Euphenisms! (And Bush-bashing)

[rebness]

Was rather amused at reading today's Metro and coming across a wee quiz that I shall be lazy and reproduce here. Try it out and see how good you are in Newspeak.

Identify any three of these actual US government euphenisms.

1. Security contractors

2. Poorly buffered precipitation

3. Controlled flight into terrain

4. Ambient noncombatant personnel

5. Pre-dawn vertical insertion

6. Low-yield, clean thermonuclear device

7. Permanent pre-hostility





Identify any three of these actual US government euphenisms.

1. Security contractors
Mercenaries

2. Poorly buffered precipitation
Acid rain

3. Controlled flight into terrain
Plane crash

4. Ambient noncombatant personnel
Refugees

5. Pre-dawn vertical insertion
Invasion

6. Low-yield, clean thermonuclear device
Bomb

7. Permanent pre-hostility
Peace

Comments

[wiebke.livejournal.com]

7. Permanent pre-hostility
Peace

Orwell was sooooooooooo right.

Meanwhile here in Georgia some town had planned on marking Memorial Day by reading out the list of all the U.S. dead in Iraq. But they couldn't do it because it would've made the ceremony to long. They should have done it anyway!

[pandorasblog]

4. Ambient noncombatant personnel

*shudder* That put me in mind of "ambient life"; ie. videogame buzzwords for the life that is set to just go on around you as you play.

7. Permanent pre-hostility
Peace

Oh Gawd. Just wait until this one takes hold (as Americanisms are wont to do... though we wouldn't be without the likes of "babycakes", really ;-)), and our lot @ Stormont start calling it the "permanent pre-hostility process"...